Blood Runs Cold
by the one who hums
Summary: Mirai believes she doesn't need a meister, but Akihito Kanbara is determined to prove her wrong. (Soul Eater AU)
1. Chapter 1

**A/N:** Dedicated to Taylor (akihitoh on tumblr) because she's been looking for some new KNK fanfics to read. Also dedicated to the anon who sent her the KNK/Soul Eater suggestion, because that was a very very good idea. You rock, anon.

Disclaimer: I have like 30 dollars left to my name. If I owned this anime I think I'd be a lot richer by now.

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><p>Akihito didn't understand Mirai Kuriyama's choices at all. She had only just recently transferred to the DWMA in Death City, yet instead of looking for potential partners in some of the beginner's NOT classes, she immediately set forth in enrolling in EAT courses without a partner. In fact, she just told him she had signed up for both weapon <em>and <em>meister classes.

"So you're saying you don't….want a partner?"

"No," Mirai said curtly, breaking apart her chopsticks and looking down at her bowl of basic udon noodles. It was all she could afford in the DWMA cafeteria that still reminded her of home.

"But why?" Akihito asked sincerely. "Having a meister would make you stronger! Resonating souls with someone is a powerful experience that amplifies your abilities and helps you grow as a weapon! Don't you want that?"

Mirai turned to look at him. "Senpai, I'm not like you or Mistsuki-senpai or Hiroomi-senpai." Her expression remained stern. "We don't go through life the same way. It's better off for me to remain alone. And that's how I'd like to stay." She looked at him pointedly.

Akihito sighed and stood up from Mirai's table. "If you insist…"

Mirai breathed out in relief as he walked away. Finally she could eat in peace without the unpleasant boy disturbing her. As she turned back to her tray she noticed that in the place where Akihito had been sitting beside her was an onigiri rice ball.

Just because she turned him away didn't mean he didn't care.

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><p>"I heard your first mission is right here in Death City," Akihito said without warning, walking beside her on the way back to her apartment building. "Are you nervous?"<p>

Mirai touched the edge of her glasses and pushed them higher up her nose. "No, why should I be? I've trained for this before."

"I'm sure it would be a lot easier with a meister."

"If I'm alone I don't have to rely on anyone else," she said, her expression unreadable. "This way I only have to be concerned for my well-being."

He looked at her sadly. "That sounds like a lonely way of getting by."

She pulled puffed out her chest a little bit and looked up at him as she walked. "I don't need anyone's help becoming a Death Scythe. I can do it on my own and save myself unpleasantness. Now excuse me," she stopped suddenly. "But this is where I live."

Akihito looked at the apartment building they were standing in front of. "Alright…" he murmured awkwardly, not wanting to let the conversation die. But before he could say anything, Mirai was walking up to the main door to let herself inside.

"Kuriyama-san!" he called out suddenly, causing her to turn around before she stepped through the threshold. She looked at him impatiently. "Good luck on your mission tonight," he told her with a smile.

She let a small smile form on her face for only a moment. "Thank you for walking me home, Senpai. Please don't do it again." And before he could respond, she was closing the door behind her.

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><p>The kishin egg was too fast for her. Mirai felt foolish chasing the thing round and round an empty playground at night. If someone were observing her from far away, it would appear like she was an older sister chasing an unruly younger sibling. But the pre-kishin was no child. Its small ghoulish form was wrapped in bandages, eyes red as blood and yellow teeth jagged and sharp. Mirai circled around the swing set, trying to cut the kishin off before it could run back into the complicated jumble of tubes and slides. The kishin slowed as it turned to run back to the play structure, as expected, and Mirai transformed her right arm into a red sword and swung.<p>

Unfortunately, she aimed too high and the kishin egg ducked to the side at the last moment and avoided her blade, running back to the play structure and hiding inside an enclosed slide.

"Not again…" she said, using her still-human arm to lean against the swing set and pant. Once the kishin went inside the play structure, Mirai had no choice but to wait until it came out to chase it again.

"Go to the other end of the structure!" she heard from behind her.

"Huh?" Mirai turned around to see a familiar boy in a sweater vest hiding behind a tree nearby.

"The other end of the playground! It's going to come out on that side!" he called again, pointing to opposite end of the play set, across from the slide the kishin egg had crawled up.

"Senpai! What are you doing here?" She called back to him angrily. "Are you _spying _onme?"

"I'm helping you! It's going to come out in a few seconds!"

She growled angrily, running to the other side of the play structure while her blood boiled at the thought of that boy coming to watch her mission. She swore to Death she would ask for a mission outside of the country next time.

Standing at the other end of the closed play structure, Mirai could see the pre-kishin running towards her at full speed, coming out just where Akihito had predicted. She raised her transformed arm up in the moonlight and held it out in front of her, ready to slice through the kishin and end this mission once and for all. It wasn't until the kishin was within ten feet of her that she heard the animalistic growling coming out of it and saw the ragged yellow teeth that were coming right for her jugular.

She let out a panicked scream and ducked low to the ground, eyes squeezed shut as the creature passed over her head, teeth chomping at the spot where her head once was as it sailed over her.

"Kuriyama-san!" Akihito called out, watching the ordeal from behind the tree. The kill should have been an easy one, but Mirai had let the kishin egg live and was now crouched down on the woodchips while the monster circled back around to attack her. He ran out onto the play structure without another thought.

Mirai saw him approaching and called out to him. "Senpai, get back! It's n-not safe!"

"No kidding!" He ran in front of her and grabbed her by her flesh and bone arm, hauling her to her feet. The kishin, being unable to slow down after gathering so much momentum, had run into a fireman's pole and was shaking its head from the impact. But from the looks of the wide-eyed, trembling girl beside him, Akihito could tell that Mirai was not in the right mind to take it down. Something about her demeanor had changed abruptly after the pre-kishin's last attack, and Mirai looked completely shaken. Holding tight to her arm, Akihito began running across the playground with Mirai in tow, trying to escape another attack.

"W-we can't leave!" she cried out as she was pulled away from the creature. "It's my mission to defeat it!"

"Then help me find a way to do so!" Akihito said sternly, watching for the where the monster would strike next. "What is your next plan of attack?"

"What?"

"Your next plan of attack! Obviously chasing it wasn't working, so what else have you got?" He slowed down when she didn't respond. "Kuriyama-san! Are you telling me you didn't come into this mission with a plan?"

Mirai looked away stubbornly. "That's none of your concern."

Akihito turned around to look directly at her. "But it _is_ yours! As a weapon _and_ a meister you need to be prepared to change your plan of attack if something doesn't work. You have to think these things through before rushing into a fight!"

Mirai frowned at him, slowing down and pulling her hand out of his grip.

He stopped when they had made it to the other side of the woodchip covered-playground and gestured to the monster. "Do you see how it runs? Its legs are too short for sharp turns, so it has to get in position and run straight as quickly as it can. Once it turns this way, watch the way it positions itself to determine where it will run. Then you can intercept it and kill it before it reaches you."

Mirai nodded as the bandage-wrapped creature turned around. It positioned itself and began running directly at her, its bandages trailing behind it as it picked up speed. Her legs shook slightly as it got closer, but she forced herself to keep her eyes on it. With the same vigor as before, the pre-kishin jumped up towards her, but this time instead of ducking away Mirai swung her sword at it, slicing it across the middle and unravelling its bandages into a pile on the ground.

"Good job, Kuriyama-san!" Akihito called from a few feet away. His body relaxed as he saw the tension leave Mirai's body.

Mirai transformed her arm back and sunk to the ground, physically and emotionally exhausted. All she wanted to do was go home and sleep, but she knew she had to go to school and report back to Lord Death about her mission. Frankly, she wasn't sure if she would be able to endure the walk back.

Akihito walked over to her. "Not bad for your first mission. You made it out without even scratching your beautiful glasses."

She let out a short laugh. "Is that all you care about, Senpai?"

"I'm also glad you're okay." He stopped next to her and looked at the pile of bandages a couple feet in front of them. "Hey, where's the soul?"

Mirai's eyes shot to the bandages, looking around for the floating red soul that should have been present. When the bandages began to twitch, she jumped to her feet and pushed Akihito out of the way. "Move, Senpai! It's not dead yet!"

Just as she began to move bandages, they shot out at her feet, knocking them out from under her and causing her to fall in a heap on the woodchips. The bandages continued to slither past her, wrapping around themselves to re-form the small ghoulish figure she had fought earlier. The creature leapt at Akihito, teeth clamping down on his upper arm.

"Senpai!"

Mirai shot to her feet once again and ran towards the boy while he cried out in pain, clawing at the monster. She stopped in front of him, trying to figure out a way to kill the kishin without injuring Akihito further. He solved her dilemma with his own quick thinking, ripping his uniform jacket off of his other arm and wrapping it ground the kishin's small body while it continued to bite down on his arm.

"Pull it!" he told her, and without needing further elaboration, Mirai grabbed onto the kishin while it struggled against the fabric, throwing it to ground in front of her.

"_Blood spray!"_ she called out as her arm transformed back into a sword, swinging it front of her as red blood flew from its tip and hit the kishin egg as it tried to disentangle itself from the jacket.

Akihito's eyes widened as he watched the creature scream in agony as the blood made contact, spots on the bandages as well as his jacket beginning to steam as Mirai's blood ate away at them like it was acid. Mirai wasted no more time, running at the creature and slashing at it multiple times while it screeched. When her sword passed through the pre-kishin a fourth time, the creature exploded into a cloud of ashes, leaving a crimson soul hovering in its place.

Mirai dropped down to the ground as she did the first time she thought she had defeated the kishin egg, but this time she did not speak. Her forehead rested against the ground as she panted, and her eyes fluttered closed.

"Kuriyama-san, are you alright?" Akihito said, coming up beside her and sitting down.

"Anemia," she explained tiredly, trying to calm her breathing. "My weapon form uses my blood." She suddenly stiffened and turned her head towards Akihito, one eye opening to peer at him. "Are you okay? How bad is your arm?"

He smiled and patted her head gently. "Don't worry. I'm fine. It's nothing a quick stitch-up in the infirmary can't fix." He looked over at his jacket, lying on the ground next to her. The holes that were burned through it still appeared to be steaming. "It looks like that's a goner, though."

"I'll buy you a new one," she offered weakly, knowing full-well she couldn't afford to buy him another.

"I'll be okay, I have an extra at home," he said, forcing himself to his feet before he got too comfortable on the ground. "Should we go now? You look like you need to get cleaned up. And I should really have someone check out my arm."

She frowned as she watched him put his hand over his injury and pull it away, examining the blood staining his fingers. He really did need medical treatment. She tried to stand, but slumped back to the ground after one feeble attempt. "I don't have enough energy to move right now," she muttered in a frustrated tone, silently cursing her anemia for making her so weak.

"Well, looks like you need some nourishment, then." He walked over to his ruined jacket and plucked the soul hovering above it out of the air. "Here," he said handing it to her. "Most of the weapons I know say that souls taste delicious. This should give you a little bit of energy."

Mirai took the soul from his hand. She waited for him to look away, but when he didn't she ignored the heat rushing to her face as she opened her mouth wide and plopped the soul inside. She chewed a couple times and swallowed slowly, letting out a satisfied breath afterwards.

"Better?" he asked with a smirk.

She nodded, forcing herself not to smile as she accepted his outstretched hand. He pulled her to her feet with his good arm, his fingers staying loosely woven with hers as they walked back to school.

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><p>He always had a habit of popping up beside her. One moment she was sitting alone at the long table in Class Crescent Moon working on her homework, the next moment he was sitting beside her, his right elbow on the table as he held his chin in his hand.<p>

"We made a pretty good team yesterday, didn't we?"

She continued to scribble answers into her notebook, studiously avoiding him.

"Oh come on, Kuriyama-san, you're still not going to talk to me? Not even after everything we went through defeating that kishin egg together?"

She set her pencil down abruptly and looked up at him darkly. "You shouldn't have been there, Senpai. I was supposed to fight that thing on my own, and you interfered."

"Interfered?" he sputtered. "I helped you! You completely froze the first time you could have killed it! If I wasn't there you might not have come up with another plan!"

She plucked her glasses off her nose and began nervously cleaning them. "That's none of your concern! It was still my mission and you butted in."

Akihito was growing frustrated now. His hands balled into fists in his lap as she continued to brush him off. "Why can't you just admit that we worked well together?"

"Why can't you stop being unpleasant! I don't want a meister!"

"But you need one!" Akihito slammed his fist on the table. "You're not meant to fight battles like that alone! The point of meister-weapon pairs is that they work as a team to defeat kishin eggs! You're supposed to have help!"

"Having help puts others in danger." Mirai pointed at the dark gauze wrapped around his upper arm. "I'm not letting any more meisters getting hurt while I'm partnered with them." She picked up her pencil and went back to her homework, staring very pointedly at the words in front of her, but still too heated to read what any of it said. "I'm done discussing this."

But Akihito wasn't. He turned her words over in his mind, not completely sure he understood their meaning.

"Kuriyama-san, are you saying you've had a meister before?"

She didn't respond. Her pencil was moving again, though she couldn't for the life of her guess what she was writing. She tried her best to ignore his persistent stare, as she continued glaring at her notebook, but his hand on hers stopped its movement. "Kuriyama-san?"

She breathed deeply through her nose, letting it out slowly as she let the tension deflate from her body.

"Yui was my childhood friend from back home. We had known each other practically our whole lives. Our souls were as compatible as two could be, so it was only natural for us to partner up at our local weapon-meister academy. She knew about my unique weapon form and was able to use it with minimal damage to my health. She was my best friend and my first meister..."

She stopped to inhale deeply again.

"What happened?" Akihito asked gently.

Her next breath was significantly shakier than her last. "We had been partnered for almost six months. It was supposed to be a standard mission: get in, kill the kishin, and get out. We had an entire box of instant ramen in our apartment that we were planning on eating that weekend while we watched movies."

She paused.

"…But Yui never came home with me. The kishin egg was sleek and fast, and she didn't even see it come up behind her. She was too busy making sure I hadn't used too much of my blood…"

Akihito helplessly watched as Mirai's head dipped and a small hiccup escaped her. He reached his hands out, unsure of what to do to comfort her, but she only shook her head and hugged her arms around herself.

"A weapon-partner is always willing to die for her meister," she said quietly, her voice wet. "It should have been _me_. But Yui died that night because she was too concerned about my wellbeing instead of herself." She looked glanced up at Akihito, bangs shifting back and forth as she shook her head. "I can't let that happen again. I can't…"

Finally Akihito couldn't take it anymore. He pulled Mirai to his body, wrapping his arms gently around her. She stiffened for a moment, getting ready to pull away, but after a moment she gave in, pressing her face into his sweater as she cried.

It was all her fault and she hated herself for it. She had vowed she would never partner again for as long as she lived. That way she would never have to put anyone else in harm's way, and she would never have to feel worse than this. But the boy hugging her seemed to refute that vow she had made to herself. He showed up to her mission and saved her, and because of that he was hurt. Mirai only had to turn her head to see the bloody bandage on his arm to reaffirm her promise to herself. She couldn't have another meister.

"You're wrong, you know," she heard him say.

"Senpai?" She lifted her face away from the damp spot on his sweater to look at him.

Akihito pulled away from her slightly, looking into her misty eyes. "You're wrong. You think it's your fault that Yui died. You think that her concern for you is the cause of her death."

"It _was_," she said angrily.

"Having someone care about you isn't a weakness. If you think that way, you'll never let anyone get close to you."

She shook her head. "That doesn't matter."

"You say that, but I don't think you mean it." He rested his hands on her shoulders. "Kuriyama-san, do you miss Yui?"

"Of course I do!"

"And when she was alive, you loved the friendship the two of you shared?"

"Yes," she answered, not understanding where he was going with this line of questioning.

"Then it _does _matter to you. It's not that you don't want another meister, it's that you don't want to let go of the guilt you feel." She tried to look away, but Akihito dipped his head to the side, remaining in her line of sight. "You need to forgive yourself, Kuriyama-san."

Mirai's eyes remained locked with his for a moment. She wanted to believe him, to believe that Yui's death was not her fault and that it was okay to move on. But problems weren't fixed that simply, and Mirai wasn't ready to let go just yet.

"I can't," she murmured, to Akihito's dissatisfaction.

He frowned at her, arms dropping to his sides in defeat. If he couldn't get through to her now, he doubted much would change in the future.

"But Senpai?"

He looked up at her interjection.

"I think…" she struggled for a moment with her words, frowning intensely at the air in front of her as she picked out what she wanted to say. "I think I might be willing to try partnering with you."

Her heartbeat quickened at the positively gleeful smile that suddenly broke across his face.

"You're still not my meister!" she clarified, though her words didn't affect his grin. "This will be like a test run."

"Yes!" he shouted, shooting his fist in the air. "Don't worry, Kuriyama-san! I'll be a great partner!" He stood up abruptly and turned to leave the aisle. "I'll go tell Lord Death to assign me to your next mission as well!" He ran down the stairs of Class Crescent Moon.

Mirai couldn't help the small smile that formed on her lips at his enthusiasm. He would never be Yui, but the warmth spreading through her told her that maybe Akihito could still be an important part of her life, if she was willing to let him in.

Akihito skidded to a halt just as he passed under the doorframe, turning around to poke his head back into the classroom to say one more thing to his future partner.

"Hey, Kuriyama-san?"

Mirai looked up from where she sat, packing her things into her bookbag.

"Thank you." He hoped she could hear the sincerity in his words.

Mirai could only avert her gaze and hope the blush spreading on her cheeks wasn't visible from such a distance. "Don't be unpleasant."

He laughed at her sour expression and left the classroom to go to the Death Room. Being the meister of a bespectacled beauty was going to be as wonderful as he imagined it to be, and it would be even greater because it was _her._

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><p><strong>AN:** Here's hoping I can muster up the energy to write more one-shots in this universe, because this is just begging to be continued.

Anyways, how did you like it?


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N**: Second installment of this AU! And written in a timely manner as well? Blasphemy.

Disclaimer: I don't own Kyoukai no Kanata or Soul Eater. I think a half a box of poptarts is all I have to my name right now, in fact.

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><p>"Senpai, please tell me you're joking."<p>

"Why would I kid about something like this?"

Mirai let herself fall back against the ground with a thump. They were sitting outside of the school in the clearing near the woods where weapons and meisters would go to practice their technique. Akihito was the one who suggested it, considering he knew the school grounds better than her. He offered that they eat lunch out there on Saturday, then afterwards they would try resonating with each other for the first time. It all seemed fairly logical to Mirai, who was actually enjoying her time with Akihito until he happened to spring this news on her.

"Why do you look so defeated? It's not that big of a deal," he said looking down at her. She only closed her eyes and groaned.

"Of course it's a big deal! You've never wielded a weapon! How did you think this temporary partnership was going to work, Senpai? You would stand behind me during every mission and call out attacks from the sidelines?"

Akihito turned his nose up. "Of course not! I plan on fighting with you the same way any other meister would! I just need to practice a bit, is all."

Mirai opened an eye and peered up at him. "Have you ever held a sword before, Senpai?"

"No," he said confidently.

She closed her eyes once more and sighed. "We're hopeless."

"I don't think so," he said absently, crossing his arms behind his head and staring up at the sky. "We made a pretty good team last week fighting that kishin egg, didn't we?"

Mirai lifted herself off the ground and into a seated position. "Maybe so, but that doesn't excuse the fact that you have no formal weapon training. Why did you think you would be a good meister if you're not even registered as one right now?"

Akihito merely shrugged. "I never said I would be a good meister."

"What's that supposed to mean?!"

"I never had much of a desire to be a meister before. I was in the NOT class for my first year here. I learned the basics about weapon-meister pairs, but never practiced myself."

Mirai balled her hands into fists. "Then why are you so adamant to partner with me!"

"Because someone who looks as good as you do in glasses simply can't be meister-less," he said seriously.

A groan erupted from Mirai's throat at the thought. Of course the only person to pay her any mind would be a pervert! It turns out her blood wasn't the only thing about her that was cursed.

"…But seriously, can't you feel the compatibility of our souls?"

Mirai looked at him strangely. "No. I wasn't born with Soul Perception. I thought that was a rare talent that only some meisters were lucky enough to inherit. Can _you_ see souls?"

He shook his head slowly. "I don't possess the ability either. I just have this feeling that our souls are good for each other."

She scowled at him and couldn't help muttering, "But how much good will that do if you have no idea how to fight with me?"

Suddenly Akihito stood up. Mirai wondered if her comment might have made him angry, but when he turned to face her he was wearing that smile that he always seemed to have when he was in her presence. She looked up at him curiously when he reached his hand out for hers.

"I think the best thing to do right now is practice. What do you say, Kuriyama-san?"

She looked at his hand once more and frowned. It was possible that this wouldn't work. Her soul had been connected with Yui's for so long that it was very probable that she wouldn't be able to resonate with Akihito at all. She had heard of meisters who had gotten hurt trying to wield weapons that they couldn't resonate with. She could burn his hands, suddenly become as heavy as lead and fall to the ground and crush his foot, or even cause him to lose consciousness completely. There were lots of ways that this could go wrong, and Mirai was beginning to doubt that partnering with Akihito was a good idea.

"It will be fine, Kuriyama-san," he told her gently, as if reading her thoughts.

After a moment she nodded her head, apprehensively taking his hand and allowing herself to fully transform for the first time in almost a year. She felt her body heat up momentarily as a bright light engulfed her body, and when she opened her eyes again she was looking out at the world from her blade instead of her eyes. The first thing she noticed, however, was that she was on the ground.

Panic set in as she looked around, shifting her blade slightly left and right to try and see Akihito. Did she hurt him? Was he alright? She called out to him tentatively, fearing the worst. "Senpai?"

"That was amazing, Kuriyama-san!" He called from off to her left. She shuffled around slightly so her blade was pointing towards the sound of his voice. His hands were held in front of him in fists and his eyes were practically sparkling as they looked at her. "You were surrounded by this bright red light! You looked like an angel!"

She sighed. "Angels wouldn't be surrounded by _red _light, Senpai. Red is typically associated with demons." Which made sense to her, given her cursed blood. "Why did you drop me? Did I hurt you?"

"No," he said sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck. "I was just surprised by your transformation. I've never held onto a weapon while they were transforming; it caught me off guard."

She sighed again, this time in relief. Akihito was okay. But now came the hard part: could he hold her?

Mirai did her best to keep her voice even. "Well, what are you waiting for? Pick me up."

"Right!" he said, his voice filled with confidence and enthusiasm that didn't have to be feigned. He knelt down and gripped her crimson handle in his right hand and plucked her off the ground without preamble, lifting her up and down lightly to test the weight of her weapon form.

"Huh. Not as heavy as I expected," he said nonchalantly as he transferred her from hand to hand. Mirai could only gape from her Soul Space as she watched him take a couple swipes in the air as if it was the most natural thing in the world. Her eyes went down to his hands, which were smooth and pale and without a single singe mark, and up to his face, which held no trace of discomfort at all. His eyes were filled with wonder and curiosity as he studied her blade, his finger running across the edge gently to test the sharpness.

He held her without a problem, and Mirai was amazed. How could this boy that she hardly knew be so compatible with her already? How did he know that their souls would mesh so well? She wanted to ask him, but just then Akihito dramatically spun in tight circle to slash at an imaginary foe and tripped over his own feet. He fell backward and landed unceremoniously on his butt with a curse.

Mirai laughed aloud as Akihito rubbed his sore behind and scowled. "We need to work on your footwork before our first mission, Senpai."

"A little practice probably couldn't hurt," he said, face turning red as he put a hand to the back of his neck. But then he smiled at her the way he always did, so warm and excited and without any hidden trace of fear or resentment like she had gotten so accustomed to back home. Akihito lifted her with both hands and looked into her blade. "But I swear I'll become the best meister I can be. And I'll help you become a Death Scythe."

Mirai thought about reminding him that this partnership was only temporary, but decided not to mention it this time. Instead she told him to widen his stance, because they had swordsmanship to work on and there's no way he could defend himself from a kishin egg with his center of gravity so high. They spent the rest of the afternoon in that clearing practicing stances and basic sword techniques until Akihito was able to wield her without hurting himself. He still had a long way to go, but despite how tired the boy seemed at the end of their practice, the eagerness never waned from his eyes.

"I really think I'm starting to get the hang of it," Akihito said happily on their walk back to their respective apartments.

Mirai shook her head. "I wouldn't get overconfident if I were you, Senpai. One practice session doesn't make you an expert in wielding a weapon."

He scowled at her. "I know that! I'm just glad that I was able to wield you at all." She looked up at him. "I was worried I was going to be really bad at handling a sword since I'm not a trained meister. It's a relief that I was able to pick the technique up so quickly."

Mirai nodded. Of course Akihito was worried about his technique. Why would he have been concerned with their soul compatibility when he had been confident all along that they were meant to be partners?

"So do you think I'll be ready to go on a mission with you this month?"

Mirai paused for a moment to think. "I supposed if you trained hard enough, you could be ready for a one-star mission in less than two weeks' time."

She supposed she shouldn't have been surprised at this point, but she still flinched when Akihito jumped with a cry of triumph. It seemed the boy's excitement couldn't be contained, and while Mirai still had trouble understanding his intentions, she couldn't help but feel happy too. The prospect of going on a mission again didn't seem as scary as it once was to her. She didn't think her anxiety during battle would ever fully disappear, but with Akihito wielding her, the prospect of overcoming her fears didn't feel as daunting.

She would never admit it, but she was the slightest bit excited, too.


End file.
